My personal prayer for Advent is usually pretty simple, as it has to be for a full-time working mom of a toddler. (An added complication is that my husband works nights, so we tend to parent in shifts.) Most years I use whatever devotional is given out at church to be my spiritual guide through Advent, but this year I am excited to have something more. A small group of young moms and I are going to be praying using All the Generations,* an Advent and Christmas devotional by Blessed is She. We are planning to meet Wednesdays to discuss and pray together, and I couldn’t be more excited. I am a person who always does better with accountability, and I have been craving a good women’s group to be a part of.
I also try to carve out some quiet alone time each morning during Advent to just sit and pray by the Advent wreath. That few minutes of calm before the chaos of a pre-holiday school day are so desperately needed. Sometimes I don’t get very much time because my son is also an early riser, but even just a few minutes in a dark house with just the light of my Advent wreath is enough.
The last two things I wanted to share are a mix of something I’ve always done and something I want to do. Something I’ve always done is chosen to listen to Advent songs during Advent. I make exceptions for certain days or occasions- Saint Nicholas day, baking cookies and decorating can have Christmas music, but other than that I try to stick with mainly Advent music during this season. Thankfully every year I find one or two more amazing songs to add to the playlist. The other thing I want to do this Advent is make a conscious effort to use my love of writing as a gift. I have a bunch of postcards and cards that have been sitting in our bedroom for a long time, and I want to fill them all the way out and send them to people in the mail. I know that I always treasure hand written notes from others, and I think that in a time of year where so much is professionally printed and done, a nice note might help someone else to slow down and enjoy a few moments to themselves.
That’s the whole list. For this Advent I want to slow down and enjoy the time of preparation, and one of the best ways I can think of to do that is to keep the to do list short and simple. How do you celebrate and pray during Advent? Let me know!
*the link for All the Generations is an affiliate link. This means that if you purchase the book using my link I receive a small commission at no cost to you.
This is a great article. Would love to have a copy of your Advent music playlist.
I will try to get it posted- you would really like Advent at Ephesus- it is a free album on Amazon Prime.